ACT-Houston
Houston 832-200-0552
Dallas 214-267-2222Austin 1-877-286-0024
Alternative Certification for Teachers
Generalist (Grades EC-4) Teacher Certification
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The TExES exam for EC-4 Generalist certification will not be available after the summer of 2010. Candidates who have passed the TExES #101 for EC-4 Generalist may accept a teaching position for the 2010-2011 school year. The required elementary test beginning in 2011-2012 is the EC-6 Generalist (TExES #191).
Obtaining an alternative certification as an elementary generalist from the early childhood level through Grade 4 requires a broad development of well defined skill areas. The ability to develop and teach programs in social studies, mathematics, science, reading foundations and overall language arts are all categories of educational development an elementary generalist should expect to encounter in the certification process. There are several additional areas of education required for the elementary generalist which can include educational or child psychology and children’s literature.
In addition to the standard course work of an elementary generalist, it is typical to expect capstone courses which can focus on a single educational issue or can be multi-faceted. Capstone courses are intended to help tie together your educational experience in conjunction with current, relevant issues applicable to educators. Experience within the educational environment will also be required, typically in the form of an internship and/or student teaching. During the course of an internship, a teacher candidate generally is offered the opportunity to observe and support the primary teacher of multiple class settings and grades to ensure exposure to all areas is obtained. During a student teaching experience, an education student is typically afforded the opportunity to be more directly engaged with the class. Student teaching typically occurs in the last stages of the certification process.
An elementary generalist looking to be certified in the lower elementary levels will have to consider the responsibilities found in early educational development, such as the discovery of learning disorders or emotional and behavioral issues. The ability to interpret these issues and implement an intervention to assist the student with being successful are critical components of an educator that can be gained through the academic components of a certification and the hands-on experiences gained within the classroom setting.